Matthew twenty seven going through the life of Christ. I've just completed our Savior as he was tried before Anus and Caiaphas and then the Sanhedrin. I'll read you starting at verse one just the summary of what took place in the morning and then read you verses three through ten. the subject for today. Now when mourning was come, all the chief priests and the elders of the people took counsel against Jesus to put him to death. And they found him and led him away and delivered him up to Pilate, the governor. Then Judas, who betrayed him, when he saw that he was condemned, repented himself, and brought back the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders, saying, I have sinned in that I had betrayed innocent blood. But they said, What is that to us? See thou to it. And he cast down the pieces of silver, into the sanctuary, and he parted, and he went away, and hanged himself. And the chief priests took the pieces of silver and said, It is not lawful to put them into the treasury, since it is the price of blood. And they took counsel and bought with them the potter's field to bury strangers in. Wherefore the field was called the field of blood unto this day, then was fulfilled that which was spoken through Jeremiah the prophet saying, And they took the thirty pieces of silver, the price of him that was priced, whose certain of the children of Israel did price, and they gave them for the potter's field, as the Lord appointed me. And just look at verse twenty-four. So when Pilate saw that he prevailed nothing, but rather that a tumult was arising, he took water and washed his hands before the multitude, saying, I am innocent of the blood of this righteous man, see ye to it. And all the people answered and said, His blood beyond us and on our children. Let us speak to God again in prayer. Our Father, let us know that while a day like this, so beautiful, the sun shining so brightly, light shed upon the earth, we have seen that there is so much darkness in the heart of man. We look forward to that day when the hearts of those redeemed by Christ shall all be light, and we shall be in the presence of him who is light. But until that time, though the light is shining, the darkness is only passing away. We are thankful that someday it shall pass away, and Jesus shall reign. And until then he is indeed a mighty fortress. And so, Father, from the portion that we have read this morning, we desire that we shall be able to understand it. That is so that it is the solemn portion. We pray, our God, that while there are so many joyful things in light, to fill our hearts with laughter, there are other things in light, to cause them to be filled, with gravity. And because of that, we pray that we shall understand this morning. Let us not look at something like this which happened unto Judas as only being possible in his case. But let us see that it is perhaps possible that it could happen in our case. Cleanse us from our sins, empower and prepare the hearts of those who listen, we pray. In the name of Jesus Christ, the Lord. Amen. It says that when Judas saw that he was condemned, and then it tells us what he did. That's a strange thing. What did Judas think was going to happen when he sold his Lord for thirty pieces of silver? When he saw that he was condemned, then it must mean at least this much that he awakened to the realization of the enormity of the deed which he had committed. And if that is so, I understand our Savior's prayer on the cross. Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do. And some things you do, but only later do you realize the enormity of the thing that you have done. It may mean that. It may mean that when Judas sold the Lord Jesus, that since he had been with him so long and he had seen people try to lay hands on him and the Lord Jesus would walk through their midst, the Savior was invulnerable, perhaps he thought that he could sell him for thirty pieces of silver and nothing could happen to the Savior. But if this is so, I want to ask this question. What would he say to the Lord when he had kissed him with a Judas kiss, had sold it for thirty pieces of silver, and if the Lord, as in time past, had walked through the multitudes and had escaped unharmed, what could he have said when he wanted to join the other eleven apostles again? What would he have said to Jesus? I just wanted to pick up some extra money, and so I knew that you were able to perform miracles. Do you understand? It's so strange, is it not? Or was he quite prepared, since he saw the kind of man that our Savior was, who said, My kingdom is not of this world. It's not the time now for me to establish my earthly kingdom. If Judas only had such thoughts in mind, I'm quite prepared to be with you. If I'm going to sit on one of the twelve thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel, yes, I will be an apostle under these conditions. But if you are going on preaching about goodness and forgiveness of sins and the spiritual kingdom, I want no more to do with you. And so I'm going to sell you for thirty pieces of silver, and I know that no harm will come to you. I'm through with you, and since I'm parting, I just as soon get my severance pay. There was little enough I got out of the bag because so often there was little in it, and perhaps that is what he thought. And so he would sell Jesus and say goodbye to Jesus and let Jesus go his way and carry on his business about preaching forgiveness of sins and spiritual character to the hearts of men. and he would go on his way thinking about an establishment of an earthly kingdom over which he would have authority and rule. But here is what is so sad, that some people can come to meetings like this, and I at least know what I had preached, and I've told you about being born again, I've told you to flee from the wrath to come, and yet some of you listen and say, I'm not concerned about that. I do not believe in the hereafter and you go on about your business and you let me go on about mine, telling you the things contained in this book. But what happens is this. Eventually you see the outcome of the action that you have taken, the response that has been yours, when the gospel of the grace of God was preached to you. And you must either go on your way and let the Christians go on theirs, or you must do as others have done, bow the knee now to the Lord Jesus Christ, and go along with this being born again, and having Christ and his character formed in man, or you must abandon it all and go your way. Having gotten out of Christianity all the material goods that you could and forgetting all the spiritual elements. That's what's so sad. That people can come week after week after week and see nothing of beauty and of love and of eternity and the necessity of having Christ as Savior. Because Judas was with him all those years and never was touched in his heart by those things. that touched the heart of John, the beloved apostle. How could such a thing be? Well, think of you. How much more are you like Christ now than you were years ago, since you've been hearing the truth from the gospel? It is possible for a man to be in the presence of the Prince of Speakers and one whom, having seen the Father, has been seen. and yet never had the heart touched in need of forgiveness of sins. And this was the case of Judas. And so here is something that I learned. I see that any man is able to commit a sin, but there is only one man who can remit a sin. If I said to you, as soon as you leave this building, I want you to perform a task. I want you to commit a sin. He would say, that is no problem. You could be bitter against your wife. You could tell a lie. You could manifest selfishness toward other Christians here. You say, to commit a sin, I can do that. Fine. You can accomplish that task. Now let me give you another one. Have that one sin. remitted without the assistance of the Son of God. Do that. You say, such a thing is impossible. I see. Then any man can commit a sin, but only one man can remit a sin. And that is the man that Judas stole the thirty pieces of silver. Now understand that when he discovered the full outcome of all that was involved in selling him the thirty pieces of silver, he tried to do something about it. He went back to those who had weighed into his hands the thirty pieces of silver, and he made the confession, I have sinned in as much as I betrayed innocent blood. And they said, what is that to us? See thou to it. Now understand what happened then. It was possible, according to the Old Testament laws that were still in existence, for a man to go to the priests and there were the offerings for sin that God prescribes in the book of Leviticus. And God said that atonement could be made and sins would be forgiven. But what do you do? when God has ordained a priesthood, according to the Old Testament, and you have committed a sin, and you go to those priests, and they alone were the ones who officially could forgive you of sins and handle the sacrifice upon the altar, and you say, I have sinned in that I have betrayed innocent blood, and they say to you, you take care of the situation, you seek to it, what is that to us? What do you do then? You say, oh God, I am in despair. I am destitute. There is no way for my sins to be forgiven. And that is true. And so let me ask you this. All of you who have committed sins and having committed a sin, you must understand that you must have that sin remitted. Sin that is then permitted must be forgiven. And you have to go about getting that sin forgiven. How are you going to do it? You say, well, I'm not a member of this church, and I go to a man who preaches to me, and I say to him, I ascend, I want you to forgive my sin. If the man has any integrity and honesty, he can never show you anyone, even Peter or James or John, who ever said, I am a priest, I forgive your sins. It is through the preaching of the Word of God alone that the preaching, that the forgiveness of sin is given. The preaching of the gospel, that forgives sins. There is no man who has power on earth to forgive sins save one, the Son of God, the Lord Jesus, the Son of man. He is the only one. What do you do then when you go to those that you so highly respect and have preached to you and say, I have sinned? and not exactly like the scribes and the elders and the priests and all the Jewish officials say, but they honestly confess to you, I can't forgive you your sins. You see to it. What are you going to do then? You say, well, I'll try to make restitution. I'll take this thing. this embodiment of the sin that I committed and I'll throw it back into the temple. Perhaps that will make restitution for sin. That won't do it. Do you see? I gave you a task of committing a sin. You can do that. I give you a task of having one sin forgiven. And there's nothing you can do about it. There's no man on earth who can forgive sin. I can't forgive sin. There was no pope. There was no priest who can forgive sin. There was one man who can forgive sin, and that's Jesus Christ the Lord. And Judas had heard because he was with Christ. And when the Lord looked at that paralytic and said, Son, thy sins be forgiven thee. The Jews around said, Why, this man blasphemeth. Who can forgive sin save God alone? The Lord Jesus said, that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins. I will demonstrate it. Rise up. Take up your bed and walk. And he took up his bed and went home. The Lord Jesus said, that shows you I have power on earth to forgive sins. Judas knew better than anyone, the one person who could forgive his sin. But at the same time, there is something that a man knows when he has gone too far. that even though the Savior is the forgiver of sins, that it is impossible for you to go to him and ask to have your sins forgiven. Let me give you an example. There is a man in hell, and he's in torment, and when he's talking to Father Abraham, he doesn't say, get me out of hell. The thought never enters his mind, because he knows he's there. and it is impossible for him to escape. He knows that. He doesn't even ask about getting out. He talks about living, not coming there, but he never talks about his getting out of hell. Why? Because there is something in him that knows this has been done. The Lord Jesus has power on earth to forgive sins, but there are some things that men do, and I assure you this, that even though Christ will forgive sins, you will find it impossible for you to bring yourself to go to Christ and ask for the forgiveness of sin. Now that is the horror of it, that there is a Savior who will forgive you your sins, but there is something that happens in that hardened heart of yours that will not let you go to it. You know that you have gone too far and you cannot do it. And so when you are challenged, O sinner, to have your sins forgiven, you seek to it. How do you go about having your sins forgiven? You do everything that you can that should be done. You cry out in despair. I've sinned. I betrayed innocent blood. You take that money that was so precious to you, and you cast it back to its source, and your sins aren't forgiven, and you know it. And so there is only one thing left in Judas' mind to do, rather than be miserable the rest of his life as Cain was. He was a... wanderer and a vagabond in the earth. Instead of that, Judas said, I'm going out and hang myself and end it all. And so that's what happens to people who have sinned, who have gone too far, who do not want anything about Christ and his spiritual kingdom and the forgiveness of sins. They are materialists. They are earthy of the earth. They want things for time and sense. And so when it dawns upon them just the position that they are in. Thank God some of them, not like Judas, say, I have sinned. I have been a fool. And they go and in repentance cast themselves for the mercy of God in the hands of Jesus Christ, and they are forgiven. But some go too far, and they cannot bring themselves to do it. I warn you, this is what might happen to you. Christ forgives sin. Because, let me ask you, suppose I had gotten thirty pieces of silver, ill-begotten gain, because of something I had done against my Savior. Or you had heard me blaspheme and curse and say, I never knew Jesus of Nazareth. Which sin would be greater? You say, do you mean that you've cursed and said you never knew Jesus? Yes. And another man made thirty pieces of silver because of his unfaithfulness to Christ. Why, I think that the man that cursed and denied in you Christ committed a greater sin. Well, I see. Well, what about this man that did that named Peter? What about him? You said he had his sins forgiven. I told you that Christ would forgive sins. But look at what happens. I want to contrast these two now. I want to contrast Judas and Peter. because Peter was an apostle and Judas was an apostle. But Judas pretended that he was light and he was darkness. At the Lord's Supper, the Savior said, one of you shall betray me. And Judas, the hypocrite said, is it I, Lord? He knew he was going to betray him, but he pretended to be light. And Peter who was light, because he said, You are the Christ, the Son of the living God. That revelation came from the Father. Peter was light, but he pretended to be darkness. He said, I don't know Jesus of Nazareth, and you cannot become light unless you know Jesus of Nazareth. And yet he who was light pretended to be darkness, and he who was darkness pretended to be light. Now, this contrast. Judas sinned. Peter sinned. But Judas sinned and he had no advocate. But Peter sinned and he had an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ, the righteous. And he did not have to wait for John to write it in his epistle, but he had the lips of Christ to tell him personally. He said, Satan has desired to sit you as wheat, but I have made supplication for you. I pray for you that your faith fail not. And when thou art converted, strengthen the brethren. That is the difference. I sin, and I have an advocate. And you sin, and you have no advocate. You have one who wants to be your advocate, who wants to be your Savior. But until you trust him as Savior, you sin, and you can't have your sin forgiven. and you sin and there's nobody who's going to pray for you, who cares for you until you come and cast yourself and all your sins upon Christ for the forgiveness of sins. But Peter sinned, pretending to be darkness while he was light, and the Lord Jesus said, I pray for you that your faith fail not. And Judas sinned, and the Lord Jesus said, nothing to him. Because, remember, that Satan also influenced Simon Peter when he told Jesus, Be it far from thee to go to Jerusalem and be crucified. Be it far from thee. This shall never happen to thee. And the Lord Jesus said, Get me behind me, Satan. For thou mindest not the things that be of God, but the things that be of men. And Judas committed a sin. And the only thing the Lord Jesus said was, Friend, do that for which thou art come. And this is the trouble with you. You sin and I sin, but I have somebody who loves me and ever intercedes at God's right hand for me. You sin and your sins are upon your own head and you have nobody who can forgive that sin and you have nobody that's praying for you. And what happens when a man comes to the end of himself? and he has nobody that cares about him. Shouldn't a priest care about you if anybody did? Shouldn't they be concerned? You say, of course they should. The priest said, you sin, what is that to us? What are you going to do when you go to those that you think love you and can help you, and they say, what is that to us that you are sinned? See thou to it. And you can't have your sins forgiven. What are you going to do then? When you cannot turn to Christ, your heart has become so hardened and you have no advocate for you, nobody that's praying for you that your faith fail not because you have no faith to fail. You have none at all. What are you going to do then? Your life will end in despair. People have nervous breakdowns. People commit suicide. Why? Because they have nobody that loves them that they know about. Jesus loves you and he died for your sins. and he will be your advocate. He will pray for you. He will take you through life and sustain you if you will let him. But if you never come to him and say, God, be merciful to me, a sinner, then you sin. And no matter how much you pretend to be light, you are darkness. And no matter how many sins you've committed and you want those sins forgiven, you will not turn to Jesus for the forgiveness of sins. and if you have committed sins and you say there is no sin then you're not going to have your sins committed you see jesus was given a challenge i gave it to you i've sinned all right you've sinned see thou to it you do what you can about it what are you going to do about it tell me tell me anything that you can do to have your sins forgiven i tell you what some do this is the way they go about it in the first epistle of john it says If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. Some say, I have no sin to be forgiven. And some say, I have not sinned. That doesn't make any difference. You've deceived yourself and you're a liar and you make God a liar. And you're going to die in your sins. The Lord Jesus said, if you believe not that I am He, you shall die in your sins. And so... You say, I'm not going to do anything about it, then you'll die in your sins. And here is Judas, who is challenged. See thou to it. And he goes about doing what he can without going to Christ. Then they're both going to die in their sins. That's the terrible thing. I give you a challenge. Sin. You say that's easy. I say get one sin forgiven. You say that is impossible. That's true. But it is not impossible with God. With men it is impossible. With God all things are possible. And God has made possible forgiveness of sins by sending His Son to be the propitiation not only for our sins, the believers, but also for the whole world. And you're included in that. And just as I said, God be merciful to me a sinner. And my sins were forgiven. So you can say, God, be merciful to me a sinner. And your sins will be forgiven. But see thou to it. The only way to see to it that the sins you've committed have been forgiven is by going to the one man who can forgive sins. God has ordained a man to judge all mankind, and he has ordained a man to be the forgiver of sins. And so if you're going about having your sins forgiven, there's only one thing that you can do. that is to go to Jesus Christ and say, God, be merciful to me, a sinner. Have you ever done that? And if not, I tell you, if you have imitated Judas, look, you may be associated with religious circles. He was. And then you may pronounce that Jesus is innocent. Did you know that Judas said that Jesus was innocent? Think now. What must a man feel When he has lived with someone for three years, you can't take me home to lunch without finding imperfections in me. And here is Judas who lives with Jesus for three years, and he's never found anything wrong with him other than, why don't you establish an earthly kingdom? Why do you keep preaching forgiveness of sins and spiritual characteristics? Blessed are the pure in heart, they shall see God. Why do you keep talking about those things, something material? I say that Judas was with Jesus all those years and the only criticism he would have is in the area that I've told you about. But at the end of an examination of the Son of God, three years, scrutinized, he says, he is innocent. I am guilty of the blood of an innocent man. And I want you to understand about the world to whom he speaks. They say, what is that to us? And some people have no care that Jesus, an innocent man, was put to death. Now, all of these humanitarians today, if something is done to an animal, they will rise up and protest against it. And if a child is spanked, I'm not talking about abuse, cruelly hurting a child, but if you spank a child to make him obey God, they will rise up and protest against it. but I tell you about Jesus Christ and His innocency." And they say, oh, that's something that's passed. Let's talk about things today. They are concerned about things of the present, but about the innocent blood of the Son of God. Well, let's dismiss that from their minds. And so here is Judas. And after all these years, he says, I betrayed innocent blood, and he is filled with remorse He understands what has happened. He sees the outcome of what he has done. And when he does, he takes now his sin. Understand that your sin is visible in thirty pieces of silver, and he casts it back to those that gave it to him. And his sins still remain. That is what is so terrible. Understand this. You can commit a sin, but once you commit a sin, you can never see to what heights that sin will grow. Let me tell you, because there was someone similar to that, but this time a believer that committed a sin. He was on his rooftop one night and he looked out and he saw a beautiful woman bathing. And so he said, one of my soldiers is off at war. I'll have that woman to come home and I'll commit adultery with her. And why I'm the king, that will be the end of it. But it happened that that woman became pregnant. And so then he started to try to manipulate things, and he brought home Uriah the Hittite. And Uriah the Hittite was a man of more integrity than the king was. And so finally he contemplated murder, and he told Joab, put him in the front lines in the hottest part of the battle, and then retire from him, and let him be murdered. Now, do you think David intended all that to happen when he saw that beautiful woman bathing? You say, no, had he known he would not have committed that sin. And that's what happens to you. These little sins you begin to commit, but they grow and grow and grow. And what was adultery then turns out to be murder. And you find yourself judged by God as long as you live on earth. Yes, you're going to be in heaven, but the... earthly consequences in contrast to the eternal consequences they go on and on and on and jesus thirty pieces of silver he'll get out of this but he finds out that jesus is condemned he finds out that he has committed the sin of such enormity that he cannot bring himself to go to jesus and ask forgiveness and he goes out and commits suicide now you're a sinner perhaps a little sinner but it will grow and understand this that one sin awake you down into hell and think of all the sins that you have committed your whole life long. Come every soul by some oppressed. There is mercy with the Lord. Plead to Jesus for refuge for the forgiveness of sin. Time is gone. Let us pray. Our Father, we pray that thou shalt bring us to our senses. We remember that that younger brother who went into the far country, wasted his substance in riotous living. It says when he came to himself, some, O God, come to themselves and realize what they have done, but it is too late and they cannot bring themselves to return home and ask forgiveness. May it not be so of any who are here this day, but show them these little sins in their own eyes that they have committed. Show them how weighty they are, that they shall wait them to hell, and what these little sins can eventually develop into and how they can destroy and mar their moral character. And so help them to flee to Jesus and understand that the blood of Jesus Christ, God's Son, cleanses from all sin. And that's the only way to see to it in having your sins forgiven. Grant it by the power of thy spirit working in the hearts of all who are here, we pray. In the name of Jesus Christ, the Lord. Amen.